When Xabi Alonso was announced as Real Madrid's new manager following the departure of Carlo Ancelotti, there were high expectations on the Spaniard from day one. Given all he achieved at Bayer Leverkusen, coming to a club like Real Madrid with a better squad at his disposal, he was expected to do big things right from the start.
And that's exactly what he did. Xabi Alonso and his men won 14 of their first 15 games, with the first loss coming in the shape of a frankly embarrassing 5-2 loss to Atletico Madrid, but other than that, it was the hot start fans were expecting.
However, since then, things have gone downhill. Real have won just four of their last ten matches, and have been struggling for any kind of consistency as we head into the crucial winter part of the season.
This recent drop in form has led to reports that Real Madrid could look to move on from Xabi Alonso already and find someone new before things could potentially get worse.
There have been names like Zinedine Zidane and Jurgen Klopp thrown around in recent weeks as reported options for Real Madrid; however, we could see a familiar face return to the Bernabeu to try and turn this ship around should Xabi Alonso go.
Xabi Alonso's successor at Real Madrid is hiding in plain sight
As reported by Sport, Davide Ancelotti has recently emerged as a name on Real Madrid's radar as they consider the future of Xabi Alonso at the club. Davide had been appointed manager of Botafogo in Brazil this summer but has since left the role after his side was eliminated from the Copa Libertadores.
Reports suggest that Davide could return to his father's coaching staff and join the Brazil national team as an assistant, but with the World Cup not till next summer, and uncertain times at Real Madrid, we could see Ancelotti hold off on joining his father and return to Los Blancos.
Davide is someone who knows the ins and outs of Real Madrid's dressing room from the time he spent as Carlo Ancelotti's assistant and could be a quick fix option Real look to turn around the slowly sinking ship.
The only factor not in favor of Davide is his lack of managerial experience at a top level. His only head coaching job was with Botafogo, and he only lasted since July. Making the jump to Real Madrid would be an astronomical leap.
For Real Madrid's sack, at the moment, the best option would be to stick with Xabi Alonso. Every manager is going to have rough spells during their first year in charge of a new club, and we saw at the beginning of the season exactly what Xabi Alonso is capable of bringing to Real Madrid when he has his team firing on all cylinders.